sync a folder on two mac computer desktops

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sync a folder on two mac computer desktops

I recently got an M1 macbook, and want to sync a folder (and visually have it appear on both desktops) between my macbook and my 2020 iMac. Both devices are running the most current Big Sur version, I've got icloud set up on both devices, I've got plenty of storage on my iCloud Drive, I can see the folder I want to sync on both computers when viewed in the finder screen, but I cannot make the folder visually appear on both of my computer's desktop screens and still sync correctly. I have my 2020 iMac syncing its desktop and documents folders via the iCloud Drive, and when I go to my M1 Macbook I can see and access the folders in the iCloud Drive, but if I try to create an alias folder or drag the folder from the iCloud and onto my macbook's desktop, it warns me that I am removing the file from iCloud and it will no longer sync.

HOW can I make this folder not only sync between the two devices (which it does), but visually make it appear on both desktop screens?

Or, second option, how can I make my 2020 iMac's entire desktop folder sync and appear on my M1 Macbook's desktop screen?

I feel like this should be simple, but I've been trying to figure it out for a few hours and am stumped.

MacBook Pro (2020 and later)

Posted on May 3, 2021 11:55 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

léonie

Level 10

200,735 points

May 4, 2021 12:15 PM in response to Sccrguy610

You can sync the Desktop folder between your Macs, if you enable "Desktop and Documents" in the System preferences for iCloud Drive on both your Macs. It is not possible to sync the Desktop folder alone across all devices, the Documents folder will sync as well.

My solution to sync my desktop between all Macs has to empty the Documents folder on all Macs. I moved all documents on all my Macs to a local folder "My Documents" in my user home folder, so the Documents folder would be empty, and then I enabled in the "System Preferences > Apple ID > iCloud: Options " the option "Desktop and Documents folder" on all my Macs. Now everything I save to my Desktop appears on all my Macs on the Desktop.

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Answer 2

May 4, 2021 11:12 AM in response to Sccrguy610

Hello Sccrguy610,

Thank you for using Apple Support Communities.

We understand that you would like to be able to sync a folder between your MacBook and iMac using iCloud Drive. You want to be able to see the folder on the desktop of both machines. You can take a look at the following support articles for working with folders in iCloud Drive and sharing folders and documents.

Work with folders and files in iCloud Drive - Apple Support

Use iCloud File Sharing to share folders and documents with other iCloud users - Apple Support

One other option is to go to the Finder and locate the folder in the Finder sidebar and highlight it, then go to the File menu at the top left and select "Make Alias". This will create an alias of the folder that you can then put on your Desktop or where you would like. Clicking that alias would appear the same as clicking the original item.

Best regards.

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sync a folder on two mac computer desktops

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